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Friday, February 10, 2012

SUPPORTING EDUCATION AND CONCIETIZACION IN ARIZONA & YOUTH ORGANIZING

Over the past few weeks, many friends/colleagues from around the country have asked how they can help regarding the MAS-TUSD situation. At the moment, I can think of two ways. Supporting education and concietizacion in Arizona, and 2) Supporting UNIDOS youth organizers, who also work with both Social Justice Education Project and MEChA students.

Each semester, I teach several classes that speak to the crisis that we live here in Arizona. As part of my classes at the University of Arizona (The History of the Chicano Movement and Indigenous Thinkers/Indigenous Philosophers: Abya Yalla 2012) we invite speakers from throughout the country to help make sense of what is happening around us. The speakers that come in are able to speak, not just to my classes, but to the university as a whole and to the entire community.

El Coraje, Fall semester

In some cases, my students elect to document the historic events in our midst. As such, they are again doing so through El Coraje, a publication from the 1960s that was revived by my students two years ago. This will be the 4th issue since its revival. To download copy of previous issue, go to: http://combatinghate.com/Combatting_Hate/Enter.html

El Coraje 2010

This semester, the suspension of the Mexican American Studies Department-TUSD is first and foremost on everyone’s mind, but so too are the equally important immigration issues that we experience in the harsh dessert we live in. On top of that, one of the classes is examining not the Hollywood version, but rather, the reality of, and the human rights struggles of, Indigenous peoples, in the Year 2012.

Please consider sending in a donation. The reason for this appeal, is that there is still a budget crisis at the UA, and everyone in Tucson is already tapped out. By donating, you will help to contribute to the education of UA students and the community at large. Thanks in advance. Please see instructions below.

ELECTRONIC DONATIONS:

We are accepting gifts from $50 to $100 or more, or whatever amount you wish.
The estimated budget that needs to be raised for the special projects for this
class, which includes a special issue of El Coraje, is $2,500. We hope to reach
that through generous contributions like yours. The donation is tax-deductible.
Send electronically or by check via mail.

ELECTRONICALLY: To make your contribution with a credit card (Visa, Mastercard,
American Express, Discover), please follow these directions:

This will take you to the SBS, UA Foundation Website. It is a secured site.

2) Please fill out your billing and payment information. This is needed to
properly send you a receipt for tax purposes. Fill out the additional security
code, and click on the "Donate Now" button at the bottom of the page.

3) Lastly, for our accounting records and to make sure your contribution reaches
our Department, please email Veronica Peralta at vperalta@email.arizona.edu with
your name, address, and amount given. No other information is needed.

BY CHECK

Make check payable to: The University of Arizona Foundation. In the memo line,
write: MAS R. Rodriguez Events. Please mail it to:

2) UNIDOS is one of the primary organizers of youth in Tucson. At the moment, they are setting up a paypal account, so as to be able to continue their organizing efforts. You may remember UNIDOS this past year as they dramatically took over the school board (April 26, 2011) and then continued the defense of Mexican American Studies in a highly charged school board meeting (May 3), this amid perhaps 200 law enforcement officers of every stripe, including bomb squad, riot squad, a helicopter and special tactical units that surrounded both the building and neighborhood. You can watch this at:

Those who are interested in supporting one of the legal efforts in fighting back HB 2281, please go to: saveethnicstudies.org. There are actually other ways to help and other organizing groups that also need assistance. As the info becomes available, it will be provided.